I blogged a few weeks ago about Ray Rice, then the full video was released and he was released by the Baltimore Ravens and suspended by the NFL.  Since the fall out of the incident, several other NFL players have been either arrested and/or it come to light that they had hit their spouse or significant other.  Ray Rice, Greg Hardy, Ray McDonald, Jonathan Dwyer, and though Adrian Peterson didn’t hit his spouse, it is alleged that he hit his son(s).

So here is the question, why? Why do men feel the need to hit women or their kids? I was not raised that way and I sure as heck will not raise my children to ever raise their hands to a woman and make her feel scared. Each case is different. Each case is currently being tried in a court of public opinion, but not in a court of law. Ray Rice’s case is not up for being reconsidered, as it would fall under double jeopardy, but McDonald, Dwyer and Peterson will have their day in court.

As father’s, it is our job to raise our sons to be leaders, role models, respected men in the communities, not beating those that can not defend themselves.  There are several issues at hand & these are strictly my opinions:

1) The NFL has not acted swiftly enough or handed out strict penalties thus far for domestic violence crimes.
2) For the record, I do not fall in the category of those that believe that the Baltimore Ravens conspired with the NFL to get Ray Rice a shorter sentence. I was fortunate enough to meet Ray a few years ago and he could not have been nicer to my sons. He talked with them and interacted with them and signed a photo for them. Was the Ray Rice incident blown out of proportion? In my opinion, no. From what I saw in the video, he punched his now wife in the face. Should be suspended indefinitely, no, as he needs to earn a living. But, does that mean that he should sit out a year, or two, yes. But that is up to the commissioner of the NFL. 3) Our society, especially father’s, are not there for their kids. I don’t mean all the time, but father’s and I am included in this, need to be present more for our kids. They want and need our attention, so shouldn’t we give that to them? Shouldn’t we want to put our phones away and spend time with our kids? But in doing so, we need to ensure that we are teaching our kids right from wrong, good vs. evil, etc.
4) As it pertains to the Peterson case, if it is true that he just spanked his son with a switch, let’s be honest, there are not enough jail cells in America to hold all  of our grandparents and parents. But, again, if we as father’s show that we don’t have to spank first and then talk to our kids, but reverse that so that we talk with our children, I really believe that we will get things going on the right track.

Having worked with professional athletes before, both at the MLB level, as well as the NFL, it is easy to get caught up in the hype that these guys play a game that we all love. But they are humans. They do bleed if you cut them. They will snap if you push too hard. It appears that the public is starting to grow weary of the NFL and the antics of some of their players. But until the NFL really gets serious, does any of this matter?

Father’s spend time with your kids. Talk with them. Take an interest. DON’T BECOME A STATISTIC.

The NFL is just a game, but hurting a spouse or child is a life altering decision.  Domestic violence is a serious thing and NO ONE should live a life of fear.